Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Acquires 2,989 Shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 666,403 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,989 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 0.99% of MKS Instruments worth $69,566,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MKSI. US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in MKS Instruments by 2.4% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 4,942 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $537,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in MKS Instruments during the third quarter worth about $214,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in MKS Instruments by 7.8% during the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 4,317 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $470,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in MKS Instruments by 23.6% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,809 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $305,000 after purchasing an additional 537 shares during the period. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in MKS Instruments during the third quarter worth about $468,000. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Benchmark reduced their price target on MKS Instruments from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup upgraded shares of MKS Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of MKS Instruments in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $145.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of MKS Instruments from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MKS Instruments currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.08.

Insider Activity at MKS Instruments

In related news, Director Gerard G. Colella sold 8,000 shares of MKS Instruments stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total value of $836,240.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 60,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,273,577.01. This trade represents a 11.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Elizabeth Mora sold 275 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.46, for a total transaction of $25,426.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,607,324.64. The trade was a 1.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

MKS Instruments Stock Down 0.1 %

NASDAQ MKSI opened at $78.89 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 3.19, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93. MKS Instruments, Inc. has a 1-year low of $76.37 and a 1-year high of $147.40. The company has a 50 day moving average of $105.72 and a 200-day moving average of $107.77. The company has a market cap of $5.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.18, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.75.

MKS Instruments (NASDAQ:MKSI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.23. MKS Instruments had a net margin of 5.30% and a return on equity of 18.94%. On average, equities research analysts expect that MKS Instruments, Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MKS Instruments Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.12%. MKS Instruments’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.43%.

About MKS Instruments

MKS Instruments, Inc provides foundational technology solutions to semiconductor manufacturing, electronics and packaging, and specialty industrial applications in the United States, Germany, China, South Korea, and internationally. It operates through Vacuum Solutions Division (VSD), Photonics Solutions Division (PSD), and Material Solutions Division (MSD) segments.